June 30, 2011
Since 2007, over 50,000 kids have spent a Saturday afternoon playing basketball at a Converse Open Gym.
Open Gym is a program where kids in six US cities can come into a safe and fun environment to play a couple of pick-up games of basketball with their friends and other kids. In the summer and fall of 2011, we’ll have Open Gym sessions in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Philadelphia, Miami, and San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Format
Open Gym sessions follow a format where kids play with and against players their own age. Typically, the session schedule is:
Session 1: 10:00am – Noon (10-13 years old)
Session 2: Noon – 2:00pm (13-16 years old)
Session 3: 2:00pm – 4:00pm (14-17 years old)
Session 4: 4:00pm – 6:00pm (16-18 years old)
Open Gym Atlanta
In Atlanta, 500 kids are showing up every other weekend to B.E.S.T. Academy and Georgia Tech to play, meet our athletes—and each other, design shoes, get a free haircut from our barber, eat free healthy snacks, get snapped in front of our green screen, get inked at our temporary tattoo parlor and generally be part of the game we’ve always loved.
Check out a video recap from one of those Atlanta sessions, including an appearance by Maurice “Mo” Evans.
Upcoming Atlanta Sessions
| Location | Dates |
| B.E.S.T. Academy 1890 Donald Lee Hollowell Parkway Atlanta, GA 30318 Google Maps |
September 24, 2011 October 8, 2011 November 12, 2011 |
Open Gym Boston
Starting in the summer of 2010, we were able to host Open Gyms in our own backyard of Boston, MA. This video showcases some of the local talent. For more info on Open Gym Boston, check out the schedule below.
Upcoming Boston Sessions
| Location | Dates |
| Boston University Fitness Center 915 Commonwealth Avenue Boston, MA 02215 Google Maps Reggie Lewis Track & Athletic Center |
October 1, 2011 (Reggie Lewis) November 19, 2011 (BU) |
Open Gym Philadelphia
This video features an Open Gym that went down on the campus of historic Girard College. It also includes a special appearance by pro baller Elton Brand, there to hang out with the kids and to celebrate the debut of his signature shoe, the EB3.
Upcoming Philadelphia Sessions
| Location | Dates |
| Girard College 2101 South College Avenue Philadephia, PA 19121 Google Maps |
August 27, 2011 October 22, 2011 November 5, 2011 |
Open Gym Miami
Upcoming Miami Sessions
| Location | Dates |
| Jose Marti Community Center 351 Southwest 4th Street Miami, FL 33130-1407 |
September 10, 2011 October 15, 2011 November 12, 2011 |
Open Gym Chicago
Upcoming Chicago Sessions
| Location | Dates |
| Attack Center 2641 West Harrison St. Chicago, IL 60612 |
September 17, 2011 October 8, 2011 November 5, 2011 |
Open Gym Puerto Rico
Upcoming Puerto Rico Sessions
| Location | Dates |
| Coliseo Pedrin Zorrilla Ave Franklin Delano Roosevelt San Juan, Puerto Rico 00920 |
September 24, 2011 October 1, 2011 November 19, 2011 |
